Watch William Shatner Nearly Lose His Arm to a Turkey (VIDEO)

When Captain Kirk tells you not to shove a turkey into a pot of scalding oil, you listen, man! I've seriously lost my appetite for turkey next week. Then again, William Shatner is so cool, he could convince anyone of anything. Who would have guessed that Shatner (who is almost 80!) would be so passionate about poultry that he would go so far as to create a funny PSA for State Farm Insurance on the dangers of cooking turkey. His own scary mishap with a fried turkey was obviously traumatic enough for him to go to such lengths. Shatner does a great job underscoring a serious problem in a fairly lighthearted and entertaining way that makes me remember why I loved watching him in Star Trek and later on all those lawyer shows. He just rocks.

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Who else but Shatner could make cooking dinner seem dramatic and dangerous? Who? No one! But he pulls it off in this vid, through a parody of how he, lured by the promise of moist deep-fried meat, took the plunge and bought a turkey fryer, complete with a thermometer and a "dingle-dangle." Yes, badass T.J. Hooker calls the hook for lowering the turkey into the pot a "dingle-dangle." Class. Act.

During one fateful dinner, he made the fatal mistake of not making sure the turkey was completely thawed before lowering into the vat of scalding oil. The result -- steam, leading to oil overflowing over the sides into the open flame, resulting in a major explosion, which burned skin and hair off his arm. It could have been a lot worse. Plopping a partially thawed, wet turkey into a vat of hot oil is apparently the most common cause of turkey fryer fires.

Just do a search on YouTube and you will uncover a plethora of idiots who forgot this fact and nearly burnt their homes down. But not before you check out Shatner in this first. Classic.

If you watched to the end, you'll see those tips he gives for those who insist on going the deep fryer route -- like making sure you turn down the temperature before lowering the turkey, making sure there's not too much oil in the pot, and having a grease fire extinguisher on hand so you don't end up on YouTube one day too. Live long and prosper.

Have you ever deep-fried a turkey for Thanksgiving? What safety precautions or tips could you give to others?